Nanoindentation study of sputtered Al-Cu thin films for interconnect applications

Al-Cu thin films were deposited by DC-magnetron sputtering. The formation of different phases and microstructures of Al-Cu thin films were characterised by using XRD and AFM technqiues. The mechanical properties of the Al-Cu thin films were measured by CSEM Nanoindentation technique. It was found that the higher hardness and Young modulus of Al-Cu thin films is due to presence of precipitate and ductile phases in the film. The nanosized grain morphology improves the strength of Al-Cu thin film significantly